'Opening batting a specialised job'

It was no co-incidence that on Vijay Merchant's 94th birth anniversary a daring young Indian smashed 116 runs off 93 balls.

In Merchant's days, strike rates were not important; the number of balls was not even recorded. According to him, 'lifting the ball' was an absolute sin.

Robin Uthappa threw the adage out of the window with his hurricane innings in the Challenger Series on Wednesday, and provided enough proof that batting has evolved a long way.

Four of India's legends - Polly Umrigar, Nari Contractor, Madhav Apte and Madhav Mantri - spoke on 'Opening Batting' on Merchant's birth anniversary at the Cricket Club of India on Wednesday.

Madhav Apte quoted Merchant as saying, 'The art of opening batting is in leaving the ball.'

But try telling that to Virender Sehwag. The Delhi opener's name had the former greats shrugging their shoulders. He plays nothing like the coaching manual. The country has seen batsmen with techniques considered sounder than him, and still Sehwag is the lone member of the 300-club in India.

"It works for him. Don't ask me how," said Contractor. "Sehwag is a doubtful starter. He will give you a lot of chances in the beginning and if you fail to take those, God bless you!"

Mantri, 84, simplified it a little, saying, "Sehwag has amazing reflexes. All great batsmen see the ball early and select their shots, and position themselves accordingly. Of course, he is a very talented player."

The former India wicket-keeper batsman also said that there is no correct or wrong technique; every player picks up a style that best suits him.

All the former players agreed that batting had altered according to playing conditions and changes in rules.

"I think the vital difference was the back-foot no-ball rule," said Contractor. "It means that the deliveries today's batsmen are facing at 22 yards, we had to face from 19-20 yards. And with the pace of some of the West Indian and Australian bowlers, those one or two yards made a hell of a difference.

"The pitches were uncovered, but I think the batsmen then were more alert because there was no protective gear. Self-preservation was important and therefore our instinct to get out of the line of the ball was well-developed."

Contractor also asserted that it was unfair to compare the scoring rate of batsmen from the two generations.

"These players play so much cricket that they are always prepared and there are a lot of opportunities. Secondly, we didn't have 90 overs per day. It would be lot lesser and because we had to prevent injuries we had to leave a lot of deliveries alone. There was no hit and miss."

Contractor, of all, should know it best, as a nasty blow on his head from a Charlie Griffith delivery ended his cricket career. He was lucky that it did not prove fatal. Not surprisingly, the 71-year-old thus went on to list 'opening batting' the 'worst job in cricket'.

Challenging Apte's observation that an opener needs to "enjoy" the job, Contractor said, "No one enjoys opening the batting. It is the challenge of it that one enjoys."

But, all said and done, the experts agreed, whichever school of batting one belonged to, 'opening batsmanship is a specialised position'.

"Sadly, our selectors haven't yet realised that," lamented Apte.